BearTalk

The public is invited to join the Cal women’s players and coaches for a viewing of the NCAA tournament selection show Monday at Pappy’s Grill at 2367 Telegraph Ave.

 The ESPN show will air from 4 to 5 p.m. but the pre-show party will begin at 3 p.m.

Cal sophomore Gennifer Brandon, who had 13 points and 15 rebounds in the Bears’ 64-49 win over Washington State in the Pac-12 tournament semifinals, broke the school’s single-season rebounding record in the process.

Brandon has 319 rebounds, two more than Ashley Walker totaled in 2007-08.

“She’s just an absolute monser on the glass,” Cal coach Lindsay Gottlieb said of Brandon. “When she wants to do that, I don’t know if there’s anyone who can keep her off the boards.”

Asked afterward why she rolls up the hem of her basketball shorts during games, Brandon explained,  ”I do it just to be comfortable in my uniform. I roll my shorts because I don’t like them to touch my knees.

“I don’t like to feel clothes, if that doesn’t sound weird . . . so I feel like I’m running with the wind.”

Brandon and the second-seeded Bears (23-8) take on top-seeded and No. 2 ranked Stanford (30-1) in Saturday’s tournament finale at the Staples Center.

TIPOFF: Cal (23-8, 13-5 Pac-12) vs. Washington State (13-19, 5-13) in Pac-12 tournament semifinals at Staples Center in Los Angeles, Friday, 2:30 p.m. TV: CSNBA.

GAME THEME: The No. 2 seed Bears got a break Thursday when No. 11 Washington State upset No. 3 USC 69-65 on the Trojans’ home floor at the Galen Center. USC had beaten Cal twice this season. The Bears toppled WSU 60-55 at Berkeley in their only meeting. Cal is playing in its sixth conference tournament semifinal, but won just once (2008) in the previous five tries.

NOTES: Cal survived some offensive woes to beat Colorado 68-59 in its quarterfinal game. All-Pac-12 guard Layshia Clarendon led the Bears with 12 points, but shot 4 for 13 . . . The Cougars feature senior guard Jazmine Perkins, a Berkeley HS grad, who had 12 points in the win over USC . . . WSU went winless in February and won just once between Jan. 5 and March 1, but now has beaten sixth-seeded Oregon State and the Trojans.

TIPOFF: Cal (22-8, 13-5 Pac-12) vs. Colorado (18-12, 6-12) at Galen Center in Los Angeles, Thursday, 5 p.m.

GAME THEME: The second-seeded Bears open Pac-12 tournament play with a quarterfinal matchup vs. the No. 10 Buffaloes, who knocked off No. 7 Utah 55-41 in a first-round game Wednesday . . . Cal beat CU twice this season, rallying from a 12-point second-half deficit to win 68-55 in Boulder, Colo., on Jan. 12, then routing the Buffs 68-43 in Berkeley on Feb. 25 . . . The winner advances to Friday’s semifinal against either No. 3 USC or Washington State.

NOTES: Cal junior guard Layshia Clarendon, a first-team all-Pac-12 pick, averaged 16.5 points in two wins over CU . . . Chucky Jeffery, a 5-10 junior guard, leads the Buffaloes with a 15.4 scoring average. A first-team all-conference selection, she scored at a 19.5 ppg clip in two games vs. the Bears . . . Colorado opened the season with a 12-0 record, including 11 nonconference wins, then lost four of five.

Cal junior guard Layshia Clarendon was named to the all-Pac-12 women’s first team today.

Brittany Boyd and Reshanda Gray of Cal were chosen to the five-player all-freshman squad, selected by the league’s 12 coaches.

Clarendon is the leading scorer (12.5 ppg) on a Cal team that finished second in the Pac-12. She already has topped 1,000 career points.

Stanford senior Nneka Ogwumike was named to the first team for the third straight season and repeated as Pac-12 Player of the Year.

Here’s the full release from the Pac-12.

Sophomore forward Gennifer Brandon and junior guard Layshia Clarendon of Cal were named to the all-Pac-12 first team by a panel of 12 local and national media members who cover the sport.

Clarendon averaged a team-best 12.5 points for the Bears, who finished second in the Pac-12 this season. Brandon contributed 8.9 points and 9.9 rebounds, ranking fourth in the conference in the latter category.

Brittany Boyd and Reshanda Gray of Cal were part of the five-player all-freshman squad.

Stanford senior Nneka Ogwumike was named Pac-12 Player of the Year by the media selectors.

The Pac-12 will announce an all-conference team selected by the league’s coaches on Tuesday.

The second-ranked Stanford women (28-1, 18-0) closed the Pac-12 regular season with an 86-61 rout of  Cal (22-8, 13-5) at Haas Pavilion.

The Cardinal outscored Cal 24-3 from the 3-point line and 24-10 at the free throw line on the way to its 75th consecutive victory over Pac-12 opposition. Stanford has won 12 straight conference titles.

Gennifer Brandon scored 11 points for Cal and Eliza Pierre had 10.

Here’s our game story on the Cal-Stanford women.

Cal, the No. 2 seed in the Pac-12 tournament, opens Thursday at 5 p.m. at the Galen Center against the winner of Wednesday’s game between No. 7 Utah and No. 10 Colorado.

Layshia Clarendon scored 15 points and the Cal women (22-7, 13-4) beat Colorado 64-43 at Haas Pavilion to clinch a second-place finish in the Pac-12.

Talia Caldwell and Brittany Boyd scored 11 points apiece for the Bears, who won their fourth straight game and sixth in seven outings.

The Bears close the regular season against regular-season champion Stanford a week from Sunday at Haas.

TIPOFF: Cal (21-7, 12-4 Pac-12) vs. Colorado (16-10, 5-10) at Haas Pavilion, Saturday, 2 p.m.

GAME THEME: The Bears have a 2 1/2-game lead over USC (9-6) in the race for second place and the No. 2 seed for the Pac-12 tournament. A Cal win or a USC loss will clinch the spot for the Bears . . . Two days after the Cal women beat Utah 60-46 — the same exact score the Cal men used to beat the Utes — the Bears try to complete a season sweep of Colorado. Layshia Clarendon scored 18 points in Cal’s 68-55 win at CU on Jan. 12.

NOTES: Two special promotions go with this game. It’s Cal’s Pink Game, and all fans wearing pink can purchase general admission tickets for $3. The game benefits the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, named for the late North Carolina State women’s coach. It’s also Cal’s Kids Day, with youth general admission tickets selling for $1

NEXT TIME: Stanford at Cal, Sunday, March 4, 6 p.m.

TIPOFF: Cal (20-7, 11-4 Pac-12) vs. Utah (13-2, 6-8) at Haas Pavilion, Thursday, 7 p.m.

GAME THEME: Cal returns home to close out the regular season with three straight at Haas Pavilion, where they are 11-2 this season. Colorado visits on Saturday. The Bears have a two-game lead over third-place Arizona State (18-8, 9-6) and can clinch that spot and the No. 2 seeding for the Pac-12 tournament with two wins this week. They end the season on Sunday, March 4 against Stanford.

NOTES: The Bears have their fifth 20-win season in the past six years, giving them 10 in the history of the program . . . Freshmen Reshanda Gray and Brittany Boyd continue to excel. Gray, a 6-foot-3 forward, is the third-leading scorer (10.7 ppg) among freshmen in the conference. Boyd, a point guard from Berkeley High, averages 10.0 points and 4.9 assists, the latter ranking her No. 2 in the Pac-12 . . . Cal’s RPI rating improved to No. 27 this week . . . Cal is outrebounding opponents at Haas by an 18.4 per-game margin.

NEXT TIME: Colorado at Cal, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2 p.m.